Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals
175 practice questions
Last reviewed: April 2026
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Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals (AI-901) is the 2026 refresh of the Azure AI Fundamentals certification, replacing AI-900 (which retires June 30, 2026). It keeps the same accessible, conceptual Fundamentals scope but re-centers the content on building generative AI apps and agents with Microsoft Foundry — Microsoft's unified platform for models, agents, and AI tooling. Expect 40–60 questions in 45 minutes split across two areas: identifying AI concepts and capabilities (responsible AI, model types, AI workloads), and implementing AI solutions with Microsoft Foundry (prompts, model deployment, single agents, multimodal models, Azure Speech and Azure Content Understanding in Foundry Tools). Unlike AI-900, the heaviest weighting sits on hands-on Foundry implementation, and a light familiarity with Python is now assumed.
The conceptual half (~40–45%). Covers the six Microsoft Responsible AI principles (fairness, reliability & safety, privacy & security, inclusiveness, transparency, accountability), how generative AI models work, choosing a model by capability, deployment/configuration parameters (temperature, max tokens, top-p), and the family of AI workloads — generative & agentic AI, text analysis, speech, computer vision, and information extraction — plus core techniques like keyword extraction, entity detection, sentiment analysis, and summarization.
The larger, hands-on half (~55–60%). Build generative AI apps and agents in Foundry: write effective system and user prompts, deploy and chat with a model in the Foundry portal, build a lightweight client with the Foundry SDK, and create and test a single-agent solution. Also covers text and speech (Azure Speech in Foundry Tools), computer vision and image generation with multimodal models, and information extraction with Azure Content Understanding across documents, images, audio, and video.
$70k–$105k–$145k USD annual
AI-901 by itself does not unlock these salaries; it is a literacy signal for AI-adjacent roles. Engineers move into the higher end by pairing it with the associate-track AI-103 (Azure AI Apps and Agents Developer) plus demonstrated Foundry/agent experience. Markets outside coastal US trend lower.
Source: levels.fyi 2025 AI/ML adjacent roles, U.S. BLS OEWS May 2024 (15-2099 ML scientists), Glassdoor 2025. Figures are approximate; actual compensation depends on role, region, and experience.
Demand for AI literacy has accelerated as enterprises ship Microsoft Copilot and Foundry-based agents. Recruiters use AI-901 as a filter for non-engineering AI roles — product, sales, consulting — and as evidence that an engineer is investing in the generative-AI and agent space. The refresh's Foundry-and-agents focus keeps it aligned with what teams are actually building in 2026. It is rarely a standalone hiring requirement, but it pairs naturally with AZ-900 (Azure literacy) or DP-900 (data literacy) and serves as the on-ramp to the engineering-track AI-103. Microsoft typically offers free AI Fundamentals vouchers through Microsoft Learn AI Skills challenges several times a year.
There are no formal prerequisites. AI-901 stays at the Fundamentals tier and is intended to be accessible, but the refresh now assumes light familiarity with Python syntax and with navigating Azure resources, because the larger domain has you reason about Foundry SDK clients and agent solutions. Microsoft's free Microsoft Learn path (and the AI-901T00 course) covers everything assessed in roughly 10–15 hours of self-paced content, with sandboxes for the Foundry portal.
If you already hold AZ-900, you can skip the cloud-fundamentals overlap and focus on the AI-specific material (responsible AI, model concepts, and Foundry implementation). If you are coming from AWS AI Practitioner (AIF-C01), most concepts transfer directly — the work is mapping AWS service names (Bedrock, SageMaker, Bedrock Agents) onto their Microsoft equivalents (Microsoft Foundry, Foundry Agents, Azure Content Understanding).
AI-901 is rated Fundamentals — one of the easier Microsoft exams — but it is meaningfully more hands-on than the AI-900 it replaces. Plan on 15–25 hours of study over 2–3 weeks with no prior AI background; engineers with prior generative-AI exposure often pass with 8–12 hours. The exam runs 45 minutes with 40–60 questions in mixed formats: multiple choice, multiple response, and drag-and-drop matching of services to scenarios. No case studies at the Fundamentals tier.
The most common stumbling block is the rapidly evolving Foundry terminology — Microsoft Foundry, Foundry portal, Foundry SDK, Foundry Tools, and Azure Content Understanding are all relatively new names. Older AI-900 study material will not cover the agent and Foundry content, so use AI-901-specific resources. Allocate extra time to the implementation domain — it is the heaviest-weighted area.
Refreshed Azure AI Fundamentals exam replacing AI-900. Re-centers the outline on Microsoft Foundry: generative AI apps, single agents, multimodal models, Azure Speech and Azure Content Understanding in Foundry Tools. Two domains (concepts ~43%, Foundry implementation ~57%); assumes light Python familiarity. English version updated April 15, 2026.
The exam AI-901 replaces. Structured around classic Azure AI services (Language, Vision, Document Intelligence) and a dedicated generative-AI domain, without the Foundry-and-agents implementation focus. Retires June 30, 2026.
AI-901 (Microsoft Azure AI Fundamentals) is a considered an entry-level exam testing breadth of conceptual understanding rather than hands-on depth Foundational-level exam. Most candidates need 30–80 hours of study spread over 3–6 weeks for foundational-level exams. Most candidates who score consistently above the passing threshold on practice exams pass on their first attempt.
Most candidates need 30–80 hours of study spread over 3–6 weeks for foundational-level exams. Time-to-pass varies widely by prior experience. Engineers with hands-on production experience in the underlying technology typically need less; candidates new to the platform should plan toward the upper end of that range.
AI-901 is a recognized credential in the Azure ecosystem and signals validated knowledge to employers, recruiters, and clients. Whether it is worth the time and fee for you depends on your role and goals — it tends to pay off most for cloud engineers, architects, and consultants who work with Azure day-to-day or want to move into roles that do.
The passing score for AI-901 is 700 / 1000. The exam contains 40 questions and lasts 45 min.
The AI-901 exam fee is $99 USD. Fees are set by Azure and may vary by region; always confirm the current price on the official Azure certification page before booking.
Microsoft fundamentals certifications never expire (AZ-900, AI-900, DP-900, SC-900).
Yes. You can take the exam online (proctored via the provider's secure browser, available 24/7 in most regions) or at an in-person Pearson VUE test center during business hours. Both formats use the same questions, time limit, and passing score.
CertLabPro provides 15 study modes across the practice question bank for AI-901. The exam-simulation mode mirrors the real exam: 40 questions in 45 min, with the same passing threshold of 700 / 1000. Browse mode lets you read every Q&A statically.